Drake and PARTYNEXTDOOR released their R&B Valentine’s Day album “$OME $EXY $ONGS 4 U” on Friday, and it is the safest play Drake could have made after his diss track battle with Kendrick Lamar.
This is Drake’s first album after his beef with rapper Kendrick Lamar in Summer 2024 which saw both rappers making fun of each other for things such their height, how successful they are and overall being a weird person. Ultimately Drake lost the beef, being publicly humiliated and clowned in the public eye.
Furthermore, this album reinforced one of the many flaws Lamar has pointed out that Drake has, that Drake can’t make music that’s meaningful. Kendrick makes music for the people and to send a message while Drake makes music for the club or something to vibe too.
For this album, Drake teamed up with long-time collaborator and fellow Canadian PARTYNEXTDOOR, to make smooth, lovey dovey and club R&B hits. Simply put, this album is Drake sticking to what he knows and making music that people can sing and dance to.
Some of the standout tracks on the album are “NOKIA,”, “GIMME A HUG” and “MEET YOUR PADRE.”
In “GIMME A HUG,” Drake immediately starts off by taking shots at his doubters or anyone who tried to diss him saying “Yeah, Drake elimination, fake intimidation / Take a minute, take a deep breath, have a little bit of patience” and in the next line saying “Drizzy, you amazin’, you the inspiration / You set the bar for the next generation.”
It’s clear that Drake wants the crown back as “The King of Rap” with this being his most aggressive song on the album with multiple beat and tone switches addressing the haters and criticism.
There was also a lyric about how he is no longer interested in the rap beef saying “F– a rap beef, I’m tryna get the party lit / Tryna get the party lit for the b—s” and how he rather be at the club throwing hundreds of dollars and partying with strippers.
“NOKIA” is probably one of the best songs on the album; it’s an infectious 2000s club song with a simple, catchy chorus. This song is nothing more than a vibe to get hype in the club.
Out of all the songs on the album, “MEET YOUR PADRE,” featuring Chino Pacas is the most unique song on the album with Drake singing and rapping in English and Spanish over a Spanish-inspired beat.
This song is nothing more than a gimmick where Drake goes and tries to experiment with different accents such as when he sings using a Jamaican or British accent.
Overall, this album is more of a Drake album with PARTYNEXTDOOR being nothing more than a second thought with his melodic voice and singing being massively overshadowed by Drake.
This album is a 6.5/10 with the album having some good catchy hits but overall it’s nothing that would make people forgive and forget the tragic loss against Kendrick Lamar . I would have loved to hear PARTYNEXTDOOR play a more prominent role.
While it’s a good album, it does nothing to give him the respect he once had and wants from the public.
